Down Payment Assistance Programs
Hello Everyone,
I'm new to the real estate investing seen but have attended seminars and done some book reading on my own up until this point and I think I'm finally ready to take the leap! Through all my studies I've developed this goal for myself to obtain my first property with as little out of pocket money as possible and I think I've found a way. So my state offers down payment assistance programs for first time buyers that meet a certain criteria. I meet this criteria and have also confirmed that I can buy multi-family properties with this program. I'm half-way through the process but wanted to check up with some legal and finance people to make sure I'm not missing any strings that may be attached here. Has anyone here obtained property this way or know of anything I should look out for before pulling the trigger?
@Tommie Rowell Most of DPA programs has restrictions. It all depend if those restrictions will be obstacles for your investor journey. There are some DPA programs offer by individual banks. Explore all the options and look at their guidelines before you take a loan.
Yeah, so far the only obstacle I saw was that the property had to remain my primary residence for 5 years and I couldn't sell or refinance it at all. Which is fine, that won't prevent me from building my portfolio in that time frame. I was moreso concerned if it prevented me from writing off certain taxable items because the property was program assisted.
Quote from @Tommie Rowell:
Yeah, so far the only obstacle I saw was that the property had to remain my primary residence for 5 years and I couldn't sell or refinance it at all. Which is fine, that won't prevent me from building my portfolio in that time frame. I was moreso concerned if it prevented me from writing off certain taxable items because the property was program assisted.
As long as you are following the guidelines you should be fine.
Quote from @Tommie Rowell:
Yeah, so far the only obstacle I saw was that the property had to remain my primary residence for 5 years and I couldn't sell or refinance it at all. Which is fine, that won't prevent me from building my portfolio in that time frame. I was moreso concerned if it prevented me from writing off certain taxable items because the property was program assisted.
The down payment assistance would be nice, but if you have to stay in the same property for 5 years that's quite a price to pay if you want to keep building your portfolio with minimal cash out of pocket. Is the down payment assistance worth sacrificing 4 more potential house hacks? Just think of the opportunity cost involved.
Using the down payment assistance program - 1 owner occupied property in 5 years
Using different low payment programs each year - 5 properties in 5 years using FHA, VA, Home Possible, ARM products for 5-10% down, 97/3 Conventional for a SFH.
Quote from @Tommie Rowell:
Hello Everyone,
I'm new to the real estate investing seen but have attended seminars and done some book reading on my own up until this point and I think I'm finally ready to take the leap! Through all my studies I've developed this goal for myself to obtain my first property with as little out of pocket money as possible and I think I've found a way. So my state offers down payment assistance programs for first time buyers that meet a certain criteria. I meet this criteria and have also confirmed that I can buy multi-family properties with this program. I'm half-way through the process but wanted to check up with some legal and finance people to make sure I'm not missing any strings that may be attached here. Has anyone here obtained property this way or know of anything I should look out for before pulling the trigger?
Who is your lender? Are you working with a loan officer? They should be guiding you through this. As long as you meet all of the requirements you are good to go but your lender should be able to answer this for you.
Quote from @Paul De Luca:
Quote from @Tommie Rowell:
Yeah, so far the only obstacle I saw was that the property had to remain my primary residence for 5 years and I couldn't sell or refinance it at all. Which is fine, that won't prevent me from building my portfolio in that time frame. I was moreso concerned if it prevented me from writing off certain taxable items because the property was program assisted.
The down payment assistance would be nice, but if you have to stay in the same property for 5 years that's quite a price to pay if you want to keep building your portfolio with minimal cash out of pocket. Is the down payment assistance worth sacrificing 4 more potential house hacks? Just think of the opportunity cost involved.
Using the down payment assistance program - 1 owner occupied property in 5 years
Using different low payment programs each year - 5 properties in 5 years using FHA, VA, Home Possible, ARM products for 5-10% down, 97/3 Conventional for a SFH.
@Paul De LucaBut I could still save up for a down payment on my 2nd property while still living there, no? The income from my 9-5 can still provide me with enough savings to do that, I just couldn't make that 2nd property my primary residence.
Quote from @Tommie Rowell:
Quote from @Paul De Luca:
Quote from @Tommie Rowell:
Yeah, so far the only obstacle I saw was that the property had to remain my primary residence for 5 years and I couldn't sell or refinance it at all. Which is fine, that won't prevent me from building my portfolio in that time frame. I was moreso concerned if it prevented me from writing off certain taxable items because the property was program assisted.
The down payment assistance would be nice, but if you have to stay in the same property for 5 years that's quite a price to pay if you want to keep building your portfolio with minimal cash out of pocket. Is the down payment assistance worth sacrificing 4 more potential house hacks? Just think of the opportunity cost involved.
Using the down payment assistance program - 1 owner occupied property in 5 years
Using different low payment programs each year - 5 properties in 5 years using FHA, VA, Home Possible, ARM products for 5-10% down, 97/3 Conventional for a SFH.
@Paul De LucaBut I could still save up for a down payment on my 2nd property while still living there, no? The income from my 9-5 can still provide me with enough savings to do that, I just couldn't make that 2nd property my primary residence.
You can do that for sure, but for most people saving up 20-25% for a down payment for even a moderately priced property ($300k*20% = $60k) takes a long time. Investment property loan terms are less appealing with high down payments and mortgage rates.
Quote from @Paul De Luca:
Quote from @Tommie Rowell:
Quote from @Paul De Luca:
Quote from @Tommie Rowell:
Yeah, so far the only obstacle I saw was that the property had to remain my primary residence for 5 years and I couldn't sell or refinance it at all. Which is fine, that won't prevent me from building my portfolio in that time frame. I was moreso concerned if it prevented me from writing off certain taxable items because the property was program assisted.
The down payment assistance would be nice, but if you have to stay in the same property for 5 years that's quite a price to pay if you want to keep building your portfolio with minimal cash out of pocket. Is the down payment assistance worth sacrificing 4 more potential house hacks? Just think of the opportunity cost involved.
Using the down payment assistance program - 1 owner occupied property in 5 years
Using different low payment programs each year - 5 properties in 5 years using FHA, VA, Home Possible, ARM products for 5-10% down, 97/3 Conventional for a SFH.
@Paul De LucaBut I could still save up for a down payment on my 2nd property while still living there, no? The income from my 9-5 can still provide me with enough savings to do that, I just couldn't make that 2nd property my primary residence.
You can do that for sure, but for most people saving up 20-25% for a down payment for even a moderately priced property ($300k*20% = $60k) takes a long time. Investment property loan terms are less appealing with high down payments and mortgage rates.
@Paul De Luca I have heard of some programs that could get you low down payments for your 2nd property as well. Are those just a myth?
Quote from @Tommie Rowell:
Quote from @Paul De Luca:
Quote from @Tommie Rowell:
Quote from @Paul De Luca:
Quote from @Tommie Rowell:
Yeah, so far the only obstacle I saw was that the property had to remain my primary residence for 5 years and I couldn't sell or refinance it at all. Which is fine, that won't prevent me from building my portfolio in that time frame. I was moreso concerned if it prevented me from writing off certain taxable items because the property was program assisted.
The down payment assistance would be nice, but if you have to stay in the same property for 5 years that's quite a price to pay if you want to keep building your portfolio with minimal cash out of pocket. Is the down payment assistance worth sacrificing 4 more potential house hacks? Just think of the opportunity cost involved.
Using the down payment assistance program - 1 owner occupied property in 5 years
Using different low payment programs each year - 5 properties in 5 years using FHA, VA, Home Possible, ARM products for 5-10% down, 97/3 Conventional for a SFH.
@Paul De LucaBut I could still save up for a down payment on my 2nd property while still living there, no? The income from my 9-5 can still provide me with enough savings to do that, I just couldn't make that 2nd property my primary residence.
You can do that for sure, but for most people saving up 20-25% for a down payment for even a moderately priced property ($300k*20% = $60k) takes a long time. Investment property loan terms are less appealing with high down payments and mortgage rates.
@Paul De Luca I have heard of some programs that could get you low down payments for your 2nd property as well. Are those just a myth?
Not sure about down payment assistance. The loan programs I listed are all low down compared to 20-25%. FHA (3.5% down), VA (0% down for veterans), Home Possible (5% down), ARMs (5-10% down), 3-5% down for SFH. But you have to owner occupy to get those terms.
#4 New Member Introductions Contributor
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#4 New Member Introductions Contributor
- Real Estate Agent
- Orange County
@Tommie Rowell If you qualify to buy SFR's and multi-family properties with the low down-payment programs, I would highly suggest you start with multi-family. It will accelerate your investment goals much faster than SFR.
@Paul De Luca and @Manny Vasquez thanks for the recommendations, I'll defintely look into some of those programs for my initial or 2nd property.
Have you considered owner financing? This method provides benefits to you and the owner, along with a lot of flexibility regarding the terms. It's well worth educating yourself and keeping it in your toolbox. Here's a kid that got his first deal with $0 down and favorable terms, then skyrocketed to 81 units in two years.
